94.7 Dropping KREF Programming - Format Flip?

[scottk]

iHeartRadio's 94.7 Signal looks to be flipping from Sports Talk to something else...

https://radioinsight.com/announcemen...f-programming/

Any guesses on what the format change could be?

[djohn]

Wow! Hard to believe their ratings are that low.

[Richard at Remax]

Bring back 95x!

[scottk]

Bring back 95x!

I mean they tried a lot of variations with the Buzz and the Brew before flipping to the sports talk they have now. With so many music options digitally like Spotify, Apple, Pandora, Amazon Unlimited, I am not sure any music format would be that successful anymore unless you have local talent behind it.

[baralheia]

I mean they tried a lot of variations with the Buzz and the Brew before flipping to the sports talk they have now. With so many music options digitally like Spotify, Apple, Pandora, Amazon Unlimited, I am not sure any music format would be that successful anymore unless you have local talent behind it.

The Buzz was fantastic and honestly I miss it greatly. They had great local talent and arguably the best active/alternative rock playlist in the state at the time (though Z104.5 The Edge up in Tulsa was - and still is - damn good as well) - plus they gave opportunities to local bands to get their music played on air too. They lasted for 7 years as The Buzz, so it wasn't like it was an experiment or anything. Once they format flipped to The Brew, I never listened again - they turned into an awful KATT clone and I absolutely HATED their misogynistic branding too.

I fall in the older millennial group and once unlimited data and carplay became a thing I don't even have radio stations programmed in my car.

Hello there fellow Elder Millenial! I did too, but that's only because terrestrial radio has turned into a wasteland as these big media conglomerates have pulled programming decisions away from local program directors in favor of nationalized playlists. It's rare to find music-focused stations that aren't just homogeneous crap nowadays. There are only a couple of radio stations I enjoy listening to anymore, and neither of them are in our market :P

[Pete]

that's only because terrestrial radio has turned into a wasteland as these big media conglomerates have pulled programming decisions away from local program directors in favor of nationalized playlists. It's rare to find music-focused stations that aren't just homogeneous crap nowadays. There are only a couple of radio stations I enjoy listening to anymore, and neither of them are in our market :P

I really like listening to The Spy in the evenings on KOSU. They do a great job and have a bunch of local radio shows.

[Bunty]

I really like listening to The Spy in the evenings on KOSU. They do a great job and have a bunch of local radio shows.

In case you don't already know, KOSU and The Spy are making a major move to near downtown OKC.

https://www.ocolly.com/news/kosu-and...0cabee6f6.html

[stratosphere]

Bring back 95x!

Best radio station OKC ever had

[GoGators]

I can’t imagine a sports talk station flipping over to any type of music format. I would expect more music formats switching to some type of news/sports talk as listening to music OTA is functionally obsolete.

[Snowman]

I could see how dedicated sports talk radio station could have still made sense in 2000s, but even two years ago when they went to this format sports podcasts had gotten wide spread enough, even rebroadcasting existing content seems an expensive way to compete in that space.

[Bill Robertson]

I could see how dedicated sports talk radio station could have still made sense in 2000s, but even two years ago when they went to this format sports podcasts had gotten wide spread enough, even rebroadcasting existing content seems an expensive way to compete in that space.

More and more I seem to be the one that's different on here. I love sports radio. I can't stream podcasts or anything else at work and would rather not it the car. But I can get FM.

[FighttheGoodFight]

More and more I seem to be the one that's different on here. I love sports radio. I can't stream podcasts or anything else at work and would rather not it the car. But I can get FM.

I fall in the older millennial group and once unlimited data and carplay became a thing I don't even have radio stations programmed in my car.

[5alive]

In my opinion, part of the blame for the lack of success was technical. What ever way 94.7 was receiving the programming from KREF was terrible. It sounded very "tinny", had no dynamic range and was usually much lower in volume than 98.1 or 107.7

[Jeremy Martin]

So if I want the Ref programming I need to listen to AM now?

[Soonerman]

So what's the new format on 94.7??

[scottk]

I tuned in at 6 PM, the break before seemed normal, no talk of it being the last time for KREF programming, and no announcement. At 6 PM it went right into Fox Sports Radio National update.

So still sports....for now.

[HOT ROD]

OKC could use a Dance Music station imo, even Pride Radio could do wonders in OKC.

And maybe another Top 40 to challenge KJ103. Perhaps also a smooth jazz and a regular jazz station. There are missing holes in OKC's music offering. I personally think OKC has far too many sports talk radio and religious stations (although I'd love to see a real gospel station). Also missing is an Asian station or two.

[TornadoKegan]

I would love to see a smooth jazz station, Could finally get some good music without paying for XM or listening to ads every 5 min with youtube or spotify

[bchris02]

OKC could use a Dance Music station imo, even Pride Radio could do wonders in OKC.

And maybe another Top 40 to challenge KJ103. Perhaps also a smooth jazz and a regular jazz station. There are missing holes in OKC's music offering. I personally think OKC has far too many sports talk radio and religious stations (although I'd love to see a real gospel station). Also missing is an Asian station or two.

iHeartMedia seems to be simply trying to make as much cash from its stations as possible in the short term rather than trying to compete with streaming. This means syndicating stations and formats and attempting to operate them at the absolute minimum cost. Radio isn’t what it was 15 years ago, and that’s a shame.

The only hope for FM radio having a future is for iHeartMedia to go bankrupt.

[Mountaingoat]

iHeartMedia seems to be simply trying to make as much cash from its stations as possible in the short term rather than trying to compete with streaming. This means syndicating stations and formats and attempting to operate them at the absolute minimum cost. Radio isn’t what it was 15 years ago, and that’s a shame.

The only hope for FM radio having a future is for iHeartMedia to go bankrupt.

While l agree with you in part, radio stations have always done what iHeartMedia does. Stations used to play the top 40 ad nauseum and even sped the music speed up or cut them off short to get more of those top 40 songs into each hour. I think they simply cater their music to the occasional listener and not to the all-day listener so they just repeat the same tired songs - which is exactly why so many fewer people listen to radio anymore.

My niche is anything from 60s to 90s music and some new music and it kills me that their stations, even for an entire decade of music, is still limited to the same 100 songs - only rarely playing something different. I was working in a retail store for a few weeks and l could tell their "happy, feel-good" music channel was an iHeartMedia product because it played the same 100 songs as the radio station.

Radio, like print medium, is a low potential market because of streaming and Bluetooth - not just the iHeartRadio app but all others out there.

The few times l really enjoy radio anymore is from the University-sponsored stations or privately owned stations of which there are too few of - occasionally NPR.

As a side note, some automakers want to stop putting AM radio in their cars alltogether.

[bchris02]

While l agree with you in part, radio stations have always done what iHeartMedia does. Stations used to play the top 40 ad nauseum and even sped the music speed up or cut them off short to get more of those top 40 songs into each hour. I think they simply cater their music to the occasional listener and not to the all-day listener so they just repeat the same tired songs - which is exactly why so many fewer people listen to radio anymore.

My niche is anything from 60s to 90s music and some new music and it kills me that their stations, even for an entire decade of music, is still limited to the same 100 songs - only rarely playing something different. I was working in a retail store for a few weeks and l could tell their "happy, feel-good" music channel was an iHeartMedia product because it played the same 100 songs as the radio station.

Radio, like print medium, is a low potential market because of streaming and Bluetooth - not just the iHeartRadio app but all others out there.

The few times l really enjoy radio anymore is from the University-sponsored stations or privately owned stations of which there are too few of - occasionally NPR.

As a side note, some automakers want to stop putting AM radio in their cars alltogether.

This is true. I remember the era of KJ-103 when they used to speed up the songs. You would get used to hearing the sped up versions and then you'd listen to the CD and it would sound different. The stations were still better back then than they are today. They were also more locally programmed. For example, Top 40 stations across markets would have 90% the same music, but when you went to another city, you would always hear a few songs not on the radio in your market and vice versa. Today, most of them are national syndicate feeds. The fact is terrestrial radio just don't know how to compete in the streaming era. 20 years ago it was common to listen to FM radio indoors everywhere, but today you are more likely to listen to a stream of some sort. Most people don't even have FM stereo systems anymore so listening to a terrestrial station indoors would require going to the website or using the app, and that defeates the purpose. Ultimately it's probably going come down to changing the model entirely. Radio will never be what it was in the '80s just like it won't be what it was in the '40s before TV.

[scottk]

This is true. I remember the era of KJ-103 when they used to speed up the songs. You would get used to hearing the sped up versions and then you'd listen to the CD and it would sound different. The stations were still better back then than they are today. They were also more locally programmed. For example, Top 40 stations across markets would have 90% the same music, but when you went to another city, you would always hear a few songs not on the radio in your market and vice versa. Today, most of them are national syndicate feeds. The fact is terrestrial radio just don't know how to compete in the streaming era. 20 years ago it was common to listen to FM radio indoors everywhere, but today you are more likely to listen to a stream of some sort. Most people don't even have FM stereo systems anymore so listening to a terrestrial station indoors would require going to the website or using the app, and that defeates the purpose. Ultimately it's probably going come down to changing the model entirely. Radio will never be what it was in the '80s just like it won't be what it was in the '40s before TV.

I kinda feel like radio did that to itself. Consolidation of stations into one owner/group, removal of local talent, tighter and tighter playlist based upon "research." There are still a handful of radio stations in the state doing solid local radio. I think once automakers remove the FM radio from the dash, terrestrial radio will be in a world of hurt. As you mentioned, tabletop and nightstand radios in our houses and offices have been replaced with smart speakers and computer streams that offer a lot more.

[baralheia]

This is true. I remember the era of KJ-103 when they used to speed up the songs. You would get used to hearing the sped up versions and then you'd listen to the CD and it would sound different. The stations were still better back then than they are today. They were also more locally programmed. For example, Top 40 stations across markets would have 90% the same music, but when you went to another city, you would always hear a few songs not on the radio in your market and vice versa. Today, most of them are national syndicate feeds. The fact is terrestrial radio just don't know how to compete in the streaming era. 20 years ago it was common to listen to FM radio indoors everywhere, but today you are more likely to listen to a stream of some sort. Most people don't even have FM stereo systems anymore so listening to a terrestrial station indoors would require going to the website or using the app, and that defeates the purpose. Ultimately it's probably going come down to changing the model entirely. Radio will never be what it was in the '80s just like it won't be what it was in the '40s before TV.

It'll probably never happen... but FM radio could be competitive again if they actually gave programming control back to their local markets instead of forcing a blanket one-size-fits-all playlist. I imagine iHeartMedia (or whatever they're calling themselves this week) and other massive media conglomerates would need to be broken up for this to even be possible though.

[Tydude]

It looks like 94.7 will be broadcasting Fox Sports Radio all day. Tune in this morning and the Dan Patrick Show was on.

[Soonerman]

I wish OKC had a station like KXT out of Dallas.
www.kxt.org